


Legally Fond

by cicerothecat



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Gen, Grief/Mourning, Law School Students, New roommates, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-17
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2019-03-05 20:16:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13395441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cicerothecat/pseuds/cicerothecat
Summary: Joanna de la Vega is new to Starling City. Even she's heard of Oliver Queen. But in her first law class, she meets Laurel Lance, someone she's never heard of but who soon becomes one of her best friends.





	Legally Fond

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own any characters, etc, but would appreciate credit for any content unique to this story.

“Look to your left. Look to your right. One of them won’t be here next year.” Joanna had seen Legally Blonde a few thousand times, so she was fully expecting to hear this at some point on her first day, and indeed her very first law professor (for the Analysis, Research and Writing course) gave in to temptation. So Joanna turned. On her left was a nice-looking Asian guy who gave her a pleasant, if shy, smile. On her right was a skinny brunette, still looking ahead at their professor with her fists clenched in determination. For someone with all her notetaking supplies neatly spread around on the desk in front of her, the girl herself was a bit sloppy- with her limp hair showing some dead ends. But by the set in her mouth- she was going to be sticking around if it killed her. Joanna had expected the challenge of course, but her mind twisted with the question- if she was on A’s right and B’s left, what were the chances she was going to be gone a year from now? She was distracted from her Monty Hall spiral, though, when the ghastly brunette looked up, caught her eye, and shook her head with a sad smile, flicking her pen out towards the front to redirect Joanna’s attention to their professor. So Joanna recomposed herself, and returned her attention to the front of the classroom. When she was the third lucky recipient of the professor’s random selection, she answered correctly (unlike Elle, she had done the reading) and found her groove for that first hour.

Joanna was still finding her way in Washington, since she was a California girl by birth. She had grown up in Los Angeles, and then gone to Stanford. But her big brother Danny had moved up north to Starling to be with his fiancée a year ago, and Jo had followed when she decided she needed to branch out a bit for law school. For now, at least, she was paying out-of-state tuition, so she sure as hell was going to succeed and justify the expense. She took down notes easily, though she and the boy on her left accidentally bumped elbows twice. When the class ended, it was a disappointment- other than being somewhat predictable, her professor was engaging. The boy on her left, Jan Evans, cheerfully introduced himself and they exchanged contact info, as her orientation leaders had emphasized everyone should, but when she thought to include the brunette from her right, the girl was gone- the only one to have left the class yet, and Joanna refocused on forming a study group with Jan. Soon, though, the class exited en masse, and Joanna headed to a coffee cart to kill the half hour before her next class- if nothing else, Washington had exemplary coffee.

It wasn’t until the afternoon that she learned the brunette’s name, in their third Monday course together. Laurel Lance sat off-center in the second row in Analysis and in Torts, but when they got to their shared lecture on Civil Procedure, Lance sat in the first row (albeit the far left). In the smaller-sized classes, Lance had avoided talking, but here she adamantly engaged. For the first time in the day the other girl seemed to come truly alive. Joanna did not fully understand her own fascination with Lance, but finally ensured an actual introduction and exchange of contact info at the end of the class.

“Hey, Laurel, right?”

“Yeah. We sat next to each other in LAWR. I caught your last name, but not your first.” Laurel was attempting a friendly smile, but she could not imbue it with any real happiness.

“I’m Joanna. It’s nice to meet you.” Joanna had decided to be happy enough for the both of them, and Laurel seemed to appreciate it.

“Likewise.”

“Have you joined any study groups yet? Since our schedules are pretty in sync, I was thinking it might work well if we studied together.”

“That would be great! Here,” Laurel began to dig around in a side pocket of her bag, “… is my info.”

Joanna glanced at the card Laurel handed to her then. The cell phone had the local area code she’d already memorized. “Are you a Starling native?”

Laurel grimaced somewhat, but her eyes were drawn to a circle of their classmates whispering behind Joanna, “Yes. I’ve spent my whole life here pretty much. I take it you aren’t, then?”

“Ah, no. I’m from sunny L.A. I’m trying to get used to all the rain.” Joanna wanted to kick herself for bringing up the weather, but Laurel seemed ready for the conversation to be over, so Joanna pulled out her own card. “Here. I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“Absolutely.” As Laurel retreated from the room, Joanna watched her and was astounded by the way she squeezed to fit around other people. That was a girl who wanted as little fuss as possible. That was a girl who needed Joanna’s help.

She would get Laurel Lance out of her shell- every Elle needed a Vivian.

 

 

 

That evening, Joanna learned that the study group Jan had assembled were quite gossipy, which she initially appreciated. Joanna had always been a social butterfly and her social aptitude was her greatest skill. Plus, she was still trying to learn more about her new home. That, though, was when things got a bit sticky.

The local news was running a story on the Queen disappearance. Joanna had heard about the billionaire family long ago- in fact, Oliver Queen was notorious for making jaunts down the coast on his private jet to LA for crazy weekends, and he’d been at Stanford for a semester. But in Starling, where the Queens lived, they were even more notorious. They had donated a large amount to the university- the library where she met the other students was even named in their honor. They had pull with the District Attorney’s office and Queen Consolidated employed dozens of lawyers for all sorts of business law, but mainly patents and contracts. They were definitely of interest to Joanna’s study group.

“Who wants to bet Lady Queen will try suing the ocean if they don’t show up by Christmas?”

“Don’t be an idiot, Elliot,” Jan, at least, was trying to steer the group back on focus.

Another girl in the group, Megan, spoke up, “It must suck right now. Laurel Lance looked like an absolute mess.” Joanna’s ears perked up at the mention of the girl she intended to befriend.

“I went to high school with them. She got what she asked for, dating him.” Joanna had decided she did not like Elliot, though she was curious to learn more of the details about Laurel and Oliver Queen.

“You know, Jan, she’s in our class. She sits next to me actually. We should invite her to the group.”

Elliot spoke up, “It’s a good idea. She singlehandedly tutored Queen into a B in English our freshman year. Plus, she probably has great hook-ups with the local law offices from all those Queen parties and her dad’s a cop.”

Jan looked at Joanna as she turned a megawatt smile on him, “Sure.”

The next day, Joanna sat next to Laurel in their two classes and invited Laurel to the Queen Library for a study session Wednesday evening, and though Laurel grimaced at the name, she gladly accepted. Joanna made sure Elliot was on his best behavior.

 

 

 

Joanna had gone over to Laurel’s to study for a Torts exam. Laurel lived in a nice-ish part of town. She was further from the university than any of their classmates, in a brownstone not too far out of downtown. It was bigger than Joanna suspected Laurel could afford by herself.

“This is a great place. How long have you lived here?”

“Since July.” When Laurel saw Joanna’s eyes roaming over the sparsely furnished space, she quickly added, “I’m going to sublet next semester. My roommate… he backed out.”

Joanna wanted to say how lucky Laurel was her parents didn’t give her grief about living with a guy, but she bit her tongue. Laurel never talked about her parents, and Joanna knew enough to know that the guy in question didn’t just back out, but died.

“That’s a shame. It’s a great space.” Jo’s dad was a real-estate agent, and she could imagine him going over the selling points in her head. She suspected that he wanted her to specialize in real-estate law, so they could open a father-daughter office back in

California. “Where are you thinking of moving?”

“My parents have a place in the North District, on Depot. And I miss having them around, to be honest.” Joanna didn’t think Laurel was being honest, though.

“My brother’s in the North District too. I’ve been living with him and his fiancée.” Joanna pulled a face- she was not the biggest fan of her sister-in-law-to-be. “Fair warning, traffic to the university sucks because of the drawbridge.”

“It’s ridiculous! I had friends in high-school who lived further out, and every time they were late they thought they could use the bridge backing up to excuse it. Until finally one of our teachers called them out on it- she gave them a print-out of the time table and said they better be on time from then on out.”

Joanna laughed, “Good on her,” and Laurel grinned in return. Jo knew the moment the idea entered Laurel’s head. Joanna hadn’t been trying to manipulate her, or at least not solely for Joanna’s own benefit, but she had hoped Laurel might realize it. She saw Laurel weighing the idea around in her head and waited for her to voice it.

“Would you be interested in moving in?” Laurel was hesitant, but oh so hopeful, and Joanna jumped up with excitement in response.

“Of course!” Laurel proceeded to give Joanna the full tour. Instead of studying as intended, they decided to practice contract-drawing skills with plenty of zeal.

 

 

 

Joanna didn’t move in until December 21, after their fall exams were completed. That was the day she met Quentin Lance, as he helped Laurel carry a new red couch up the cramped staircase in the building- they did a hilarious reenactment of “pivot.” Laurel had slowly been furnishing the apartment now that she was going to stay longer.

Quentin seemed kind as he drank a mug of coffee, but tired. Laurel had confided in Joanna that her father had been on the “Dollmaker” case, and so Joanna thanked him. His stare in response had been unsettling. Like Laurel, he seemed haunted, and Joanna couldn’t be sure if it was just this family, or this city. But after a moment he had thanked her in kind for “being the friend Laurel needed.” He turned his gaze to his daughter, tinkering away in the kitchen, and then to a photo of the two of them with a birdcage. Joanna sat stunned, unsure what to say. Her own father steadfastly refused to be too vulnerable around her. She waited instead until Quentin was ready to reengage. He said Laurel had mentioned she had a firefighter brother, and asked questions until the awkwardness had passed. Laurel joined them on the couch, and the discussion turned to their next set of courses. Eventually it hit 6 and Quentin stood to go, with murmured words about how Dinah was expecting him home for dinner soon. There was an invitation, too, for Joanna and Danny to join them for Christmas dinner if she was in town. Joanna, however, was going home for the holidays, with her brother in tow, and Quentin told her how grateful her parents must be. He hugged Laurel tightly, and he left.

 

 

 

Joanna and Danny drove back to Starling on December 31. She had a date with Jan for New Year’s Eve- they were aiming for a midnight kiss to bring their new relationship good luck in the coming year. The apartment was dark when she walked in, which was no surprise since Laurel had hinted she’d be at her parents’ home for most of the holidays. Joanna got dressed in her best, went out, had a good time, had a great kiss, and brought Jan back for the night. She’d enjoyed most of the first day of 2008 before she realized late in the evening that she wasn’t alone in the apartment. She heard choking sobs coming from Laurel’s room, and after her knocks went unanswered twice she opened the door without invitation. Laurel’s belongings were strewn across the floor- clothing, photographs, necklaces. Empty bottles of wine and crumpled up chip bags. When Laurel saw Joanna, she just hid under the covers of her bed, like maybe Joanna wouldn’t see her upright body beneath the crumpled blankets. Joanna sighed and pulled her hair into a sloppy bun.

“Laurel, I’m going to pull the covers off in a minute if that’s ok with you. If you don’t want me to, I need you to knock on the wall behind you to let me know. You don’t have to say anything, just knock.” Joanna waited, and no knock came. Instead, Laurel pulled the cover off herself slowly.

Once she had the covers off, she looked at Jo, then at her room, and immediately faked a smile. “Sorry. I lost track of time. I just needed to catch up on some sleep.”

Joanna nodded, and wished she’d stayed at her brother’s place. Tiffany’s brand of bitchy was suddenly seeming more stable.

“I’m going to take a shower. I’ll be out to ask you questions about your trip in 15 minutes.” Laurel fled into her bathroom. And Joanna scanned the room again. She wasn’t going to organize it for the other girl, but she did clear the empty bottles and bags to take outside with the kitchen trash. And she came upstairs and started the microwave on some popcorn, pulled out her sweet trail mix, and set a fire in the fireplace. And got out a pitcher of ice-water and some glasses. This situation was scary, but Joanna took things head-on, and if this was going to work it needed to be addressed straight away.

Laurel came out of her room like she’d timed it. Joanna was pretty sure she had. And when Laurel saw the fire, she put on her strongest fake smile and plopped down on a pillow. “How was your family?”

“They’re fine, and we’ll talk about that tomorrow. But right now, we need to talk.” Laurel opened her mouth to argue but Joanna continued, “I’m starting. I moved in here knowing you’re mourning your ex. I opened myself up to this situation, and I own that. But I didn’t realize stuff like that was going on. It’s not my place to judge, but I also can’t sit idly by and let you drink and sleep yourself to oblivion. So I’m asking you to talk to me, and tell me what’s going on.”  
Laurel doesn’t want to tell her. But Jo can tell she’s going to. Laurel’s story comes out slowly, without the broken sobs of earlier, but this time just silent tears. “My sister and my boyfriend drowned last spring. They were together on a yacht, sleeping together, to get away from me. And her birthday is- was- on Christmas. Everything went to crap and my parents couldn’t stop arguing long enough for us to eat dinner. I’m pretty sure she’s going to leave him… she won’t even look at me anymore. And my little cousins gave me a picture of Sara- that’s my dead sister- as an angel in an old nativity scene and I wanted to scream at them. My dad broke down right in front of me- in my arms. I never saw him cry before last year. He made me leave. Told me to go see my friends. So, I stole some of his booze, and I went and saw my old friend Tommy. I haven’t seen him since Oliver’s funeral. My dad refused to invite him for Sara. And I didn’t understand why at the time. But I got to Tommy’s and he was having a party. His dad’s never home for the holidays. And I saw him with three different girls. And I realized, he knew. He knew about it all. He knew Oliver was cheating. And I knew he was Oliver’s best friend first. Those two were always as thick as thieves. But I thought he was my friend too. And then I realized- they took everyone from me. Mom and Dad. Tommy. Themselves. And you weren’t here, because of course you were with your own family which I completely understand. So, I went to her grave. His is at his house and I couldn’t go there. But I just sat and screamed at my little sister for hours. Who does that to their little sister? When I heard you earlier, I was sure I’d gone mute. I hoped I had. I was hoping I wouldn’t ever half to speak again. Then I felt like my throat was collapsing.” Laurel stops, looking up from her lap and her tangled fingers for the first time, and her right-hand drifts up to rest at the base of her throat. When she starts again, it’s more of a rasp, closer to the quiet she yearned for earlier. “I’m sorry for scaring you.”

Joanna doesn’t feel scared so much as lost. How to even begin handling this one. She thought Laurel was mourning one kind-of douche-y person, not two people and all sorts of other entanglements. “You don’t need to apologize to me. Or at least, not more than that once.” She winks, hoping Laurel’s ready to take the joke. Laurel does, though her laugh is half cry. But it’s a start.

**Author's Note:**

> I took inspiration for the Christmas events from Paul Blackthorne's Facebook post on a character study he did with Katie.
> 
> I intend to update this, with chapters focused on the years before Oliver's return and after, but cannot speak as to when I'll do so.


End file.
